April 27, 2014
June airing on CBS Sports Network
Young/Samuels take overall Motorcycle victory on a Honda CRX450R, Matney wins Class 1 again
Other class winners included Robles Jr, Hajas, Harper, Murray, Winkelman, Paige Sohren, Bevly
SCORE presented its first IV race in 41-years as World’s Foremost Desert racing organization
PLASTER CITY, Calif.—Plastering his way through a double-dusty, silt-laden, wind-blown and rutted out 249.3-mile race course with reckless abandon, third generation desert racer Andy McMillin powered his way to the overall and SCORE Trophy Truck race victory Saturday at the Inaugural SCORE Imperial Valley 250. Round 2 of the five-race 2014 SCORE World Desert Championship was held in Plaster City, Calif., located 17 miles west of El Centro and 100 miles east of San Diego.
Starting second out of 14 vehicles in the marquee SCORE Trophy Truck racing division for hi-tech, 850-horsepower unlimited production trucks, McMillin, of San Diego, pinch hit a home run for absent team owner/driver Rob MacCachren in the No. 11 Rockstar Energy MacCachren Motorsports Ford F-150. McMillin had a winning time of four hours, 31 minutes and one second while averaging a solid average speed of 55.19 miles per hour. The 249.3-mile race was run as three laps over a rugged 83.1-mile course.
Finishing second behind McMillin in SCORE Trophy Truck was veteran racer Steve Sourapas of Rancho Santa Fe, Calif. in the No. 6 Ford F-150 in 4:37:16 while the in SCORE Trophy Truck was Juan C. Lopez, Tecate, Mexico in the No 18 Ford Raptor.
DESERT SANDSTORM
With near gale-force high winds and a desert sandstorm pummeling the area of the race course for much of day causing technical issues with the official timing of the race in progress, SCORE was forced to release only partial results in time for Sunday’s award ceremony at the Imperial Valley Mall in El Centro.
Following data tracking review of the participating vehicles, SCORE announced the podium finishers in every class except Class 1/2-1600 and Trophy Truck Spec. SCORE will review the data loggers for those two classes and for the remaining vehicles to officially finalize the times and complete finishing order within each class over the next 24 hours.
ON CBS SPORTS SPECTACULAR
The race will be televised on a delayed basis in the USA and Canada as a one-hour special on the CBS Sports Network. The show, being produced by SoCal’s acclaimed BCII TV, will air twice on the CBS Sports Spectacular show with the initial airing at 9 p.m. ET on Sunday, June 15, 2014. Following the CBS Sports Network telecasts, the SCORE Imperial Valley 250 show will air worldwide in over 100 countries through international distribution.
CEO COMMENTS
“SCORE had a superb first race in the Imperial Valley area, but we could not have done it without the major assistance of the IV area, from government and policy agencies to hundreds of volunteers who embraced this major event in a huge way,” commented Roger Norman, SCORE CEO/President.” The sandstorm literally contributed to some timing challenges and technical difficulties but fortunately we have the data loggers in each race vehicle that will assist us in producing complete and final race results.”
“All of us with SCORE are extremely grateful and thankful for all of the assistance that the dedicated people of Imperial Valley gave to us not just race day but for the last two years in putting this race all together. We look forward to returning here in future years to help create a lasting legacy for SCORE desert racing in the Imperial Valley.”
WINNING WORDS
In earning his sixth career SCORE Trophy Truck race win, McMillin who has only raced part-time the past three years, pinch hitting for MacCachren who is competing in a short-course series event this weekend, praised a great-running truck and some aggressive driving for his home-desert victory. McMillin whose grandfather (Corky), father (Scott), uncle (Mark), sister (Jessica) and cousins (Dan and Luke) have all won SCORE races, was elated at the finish line south of Superstition Mountain.
Driving like a reserve getting a shot in the starting lineup, McMillin pounded the swirling desert dirt into submission as he hammered the competition in the desert he knows so well.
“I grew up in this desert,” commented McMillin who finished second in his first race with MacCachren at last year’s Tecate SCORE Baja 1000 in Mexico. I felt really relaxed and comfortable knowing the terrain and the feel of the desert around Superstition (mountain).”
“It was a lot of fun out there today and SCORE put on a great Inaugural SCORE Imperial Valley 250. I was pumped to get on top of the podium and I’ve got thank Rob MacCachren for giving me the keys to his truck for the weekend. It means a lot to have a guy who is so good at desert racing and such a legend to have the trust and faith in me to race his truck for him.
“Rob’s truck ran flawlessly all day and never stopped. This truck is similar to mine and it is setup really good for this race. Normally when I test my truck out here it runs well and then I take it down to Mexico and it doesn’t run well. This one worked well in qualifying and it worked well in the race. It means a lot to win this race in my own backyard. Being familiar with the terrain and the course really helped. It was a really fun course. It was really fast and it had some silt and really deep holes.”
M/Cs & ATVs
The overall and Open motorcycle winner was the team of Ian Young, San Clemente, Calif./Mark Samuels, Yucaipa, Calif., who split the riding on the No. 1x Honda CRF450X. The duo overcame another battle for much of the race with Ricky Brabec, Oak Hills, Calif./Max Eddy Jr, Barstow, Calif., on the No. 4x Kawasaki KX450F, finishing in 5:14:55 (47.50mph). Young was pinch hitting for his brother Colton Udall who is injured after suffering a broken left leg in another race.
Winning the overall ATV and Class 25 title in Plaster City for the second straight SCORE race was the team of Javier Robles Jr, Guadalupe Victoria, Mexico/Mike Cafro, Fallbrook, Calif./Jorie Williams, Longview, Wash./Robbie Mitchell, Price, Utah, on the No. 10a Honda TRX450R in a time of 6:09.01 (40.53mph).
TWO-TIMERS
Winning their classes for the second straight race to start the 2014 SCORE World Desert Championship season at the SCORE Imperial Valley 250 were Matney, Brabec, Robles Jr, Giovanni Spinali, Julian, Calif. (Class 40, Honda CRF450X), James Burman, Heber City, Utah (Class 7SX, Ford Ranger and Earl Roberts, Calexico, Calif. (Class 50, Honda CRF450X).
MORE WINNERS
Other class winners included female racer Paige Sohren, Phoenix (Class 3000, BajaLite-Chevy), Dan Chamlee, Summerland, Calif. (Class 7, Ford Ranger), Donald Harper, Palmdale, Calif/Guy Savedra, Henderson, Nev., (Class 5-1600, VW Baja Bug), Steven Hall, Imperial, Calif. (Class 5, VW Baja Bug), Noah Ostanik, San Diego (Class 8, Ford F-150) and Wes Bevly, Corpus Christi, Texas (Stock Full, Ford F-150).
RPM REVS
RPM Racing of Bristol, Tenn., claimed three of the top 10 overall 4-wheel vehicle finishing positions. Team co-owner Justin Matney won the unlimited Class 1 for the second straight race in the RPM Racing Chevy powered Geiser open-wheel desert race car. RPM’s Juan C. Lopez, Tecate, Mexico was third in SCORE Trophy Truck and in the No. 18 RPM Racing Ford Raptor while RPM’s co-owner Clyde Stacy, Bristol, Va., was eigth in SCORE Trophy Truck in the No. 5 RPM Racing Chevy Silverado. RPM Racing’s two other entries did not finish–Jim Bunn, Bristol, Va., in the Sportsman Unlimited Truck class and Derek Fletcher, Abingdon, Va.
COMP FORMAT
The Motorcycle, ATV and UTV classes raced in the morning Saturday with the featured SCORE Trophy Truck, unlimited Class 1 and other remaining car and truck classes racing in the afternoon as two vehicles started together in 30-second intervals.
The time limit for each vehicle to become an official finisher was seven hours in the morning portion of the race and eight hours in the afternoon portion. Several of the limited classes and all the sportsman classes were required to run two laps while the fastest classes were all required to cover three laps.
TOTALLY
With 131 starters competing in 35 Pro and 6 Sportsman classes for cars, trucks, motorcycles, UTVs and ATVs, entries came from 17 U.S. States along with Austria, Canada, Denmark, Germany and Mexico. When the course officially closed at 9:32 p.m. Saturday night, there were 53 finishers for a finishing rate of just 37.6 percent.
SCORE DIRT LIVEHD GLOBAL
With viewers in over 100 countries, SCORE Dirt LiveHD presented live internet streaming from the event from pre-green to post-checker. Coverage, presented by BFGoodrich Tires, included live start and finish line interviews as well as live coverage from the many ancillary events tied to the race. On race day, live satellite tracking of all vehicles in the race was also broadcast through the SCORE International website.
ON THE SCOREscope
In its 41st year as the world’s foremost desert racing organization in 2014 and based in Reno, Nev. with the SCORE Tech Shop in El Cajon, Calif., the five-race 2014 SCORE World Desert Championship series, with three special events held in Baja California, Mexico, and two in the United States, started with the Tecate SCORE San Felipe 250 on March 1 and continued with the SCORE Imperial Valley 250. Next on the schedule, starting and finishing in Ensenada, the 46th annual Tecate SCORE Baja 500 will be held June 5-8 and the third SCORE Baja race, starting in Ensenada and finishing in La Paz, the 47th annual Tecate SCORE Baja 1000 will be held Nov. 12-16.
The two U.S. races on 2014 SCORE World Desert Championship calendar are Saturday’s inaugural SCORE Imperial Valley 250 in Plaster City, Calif. (April 25-27) and the two-day, single-race Inaugural SCORE Desert Challenge, location TBA (Sept. 25-28).
CBS SPORTS NETWORK
CBS Sports Network is available across the country through local cable, video and telco providers and via satellite on DirecTV Channel 221 and Dish Network Channel 158. For more information, including a full programming schedule and how to get CBS Sports Network, go to www.cbssportsnetwork.com. CBS Sports Network will run a one-hour special on all five 2014 SCORE World Desert Championship races as well as a sixth show on the special qualifying for select classes for the 2014 Tecate SCORE Baja 1000 that will be held Nov. 1-4 in Las Vegas during the annual SEMA automotive industry trade show. All shows are scheduled to air in the next month following the event.
DILIGENCE
Following nearly two years of extensive planning with assistance from numerous individuals, multiple businesses and several government agencies from across the entire Imperial Valley and presented by the City of El Centro, SCORE’s first race in this portion of Southern California and first SCORE race in California since a 1998 race in Barstow was held near Plaster City primarily on 41,000 dedicated acres in an off-highway vehicle use area under the jurisdiction of the El Centro field office of the Bureau of Land Management.
The area for the race was also located immediately west of the Naval Air Facility El Centro and eight miles of the course including the start/finish line area was located in a one mile square area of privately owned land in the middle of the course..
‘FRIENDS OF SCORE’
The ‘friends of SCORE’ from the area of the race that provided strong assistance included the BLM-El Centro Field Office, the Imperial County Sheriff’s Department, El Centro Police Department, Naval Air Facility El Centro, Emergency Medical Services, De Anza Rescue Unit, Imperial Valley Mall, El Centro Chamber of Commerce, Imperial Irrigation District, the city of El Centro and Imperial County departments of Planning and Public Works, board of supervisors and the county executive officer.
The event was expected to generate an economic impact for the Imperial Valley of nearly $10 million.
‘FRIENDS OF SCORE 2’
Primary local sponsors for the inaugural SCORE Imperial Valley 250 were: the City of El Centro, Imperial County, IID, REACH-Air Medical Services, Alford Distributing, Burgers & Beer, PMC and the Imperial Valley Cycle Center.
Supporting local sponsors include: Imperial Valley Mall, Spectrum Advertising, McMillin Homes, Los Cuates Fruteria, Sun Community, Rabobank, First Foundation Bank, AT&T, Rogers & Rogers, El Centro Motors Supercenter, Desert Auto Plaza, Duggins Construction, IFS, Gold Cross Ambulance Service, LiUNA, Alkaline Water Company and Hutchinson-Bloodgood.
‘THE IV CREW’
Inaugural SCORE Imperial Valley Race Committee Members were: Jeff Sturdevant –Co-Chair, El Centro Chamber of Commerce/JCS Construction; Marty Coyne – Co-Chair, Imperial Valley Cycle Center; Jeff Alford – Marketing, Alford’s Distributing; Jaime Honald – El Centro Chamber of Commerce/Burgers & Beer, Marketing/Awards Ceremony; Brandon Adams – Marketing, Alford’s Distributing; Darletta Willis – El Centro Chamber Of Commerce, Sponsors; Travis Coyne – Hotels and Equipment, Imperial Valley Cycle Center; Gary Wyatt – County of Imperial – Permits; Charla Teeters – United Desert Gateway, Imperial Valley Film Commission, permits; Steven Gutierrez – Imperial County Sherriff Department, Law enforcement/Safety; Gordon Johnson – Imperial County Sherriff Department, Law enforcement/Safety; Jim McGenley – Chief of El Centro Police Department, Law enforcement/Safety; Bob Ham – Checkers off Road Racing Team; Kirk Hester – District 38/Torrence’s Farm Implements, course design; Tony Rouhotus – Chief of Imperial County Fire, Safety; Art Eugenio – Get Some Photography; Randy Taylor – Rabo-Bank; Carlos Coral – SCORE International.
WEEKLY SCORE DIRT LIVEHD
SCORE Dirt LiveHD, SCORE’s weekly Tuesday night internet studio show from El Cajon, Calif., also goes on-site live with expanded event coverage during SCORE events. Live event coverage in 2014 will include week-long live coverage of the entire five-race 2014 SCORE World Desert Championship series of two races in the United States and three in Baja California, Mexico. The first USA event of the inaugural SCORE World Desert Championship series will be the inaugural SCORE Imperial Valley 250.
DIRT LIVEHD CREW
Desert racing public address announcer and former racer George Antill is the executive producer and host of the popular show. A special segment most weeks is SCORE Tech Tips with SCORE Tech co-directors Jake Velasco or Art Savedra or SCORE Trophy Truck racer and prep-shop owner T.J. Flores.
Shaun Sauer, SCORE Media Production Manager, is the coordinating producer of the show. The program is hosted on ustream.com, the world’s largest streaming internet site.
SCORE SPONSORS…
Official Sponsors: Tecate Beer-Official Beer/Official Race Sponsor, Monster Energy-Official Energy Drink, BFGoodrich Tires-Official Tire, Amber Racing Services-Official Race Fuels, Rigid Industries-Official Lights, King Shocks-Official Shock Absorber, Polaris-Official UTV, Volaris Airlines-Official Airline, CBS Sports Network-Official Television Partner, Wide Open Excursions- Official Arrive and Drive Company, Coca-Cola-Official Soft Drink, Crystal Bay Casino-Official Casino, Hotel Coral and Marina-Official Hotel.
Associate Sponsors: Graham Watchmakers, SatellitePhoneStore.com, Symons Ambulance Company.
Additional SCORE Partners: Proturismo Ensenada, Visit Baja California Sur, Baja California Secretary of Tourism, Baja California Sur State Government, Mexicali Ayuntamineto, COTUCO Mexicali/San Felipe, Cruz Roja Mexicana, Corporate Helicopters, Instant Mexico Auto Insurance, GoPro, PCI Race Radios, McKenzie’s Performance Products and Advanced Color Graphics.
For more information, visit the official website of the SCORE World Desert Championship series at www.score-international.com.
SCORE MEDIA CONTACT: Dominic Clark, dominiccnv@aol.com